#323 mulefall crt

[trulybetty]

323 Mulefall Crt. Chapter One | Monday

Pairing: no outbreak!Joel x OFC Word Count: 3,048 Warnings: mentions of alcohol, food, minor mentions of a previous relationship, a brief suggestion of possible cheating, Cousin Joel™️ comes with his own warnings, as does David! Chapter Summary: Cousin Joel has officially arrived on Mulefall Crt. and happenstance has Katie running into both him and Will. AO3: Linked

A/N: it's finally here! Or should I say he's finally here? 😏 This has been in the works for such a long time in collaboration with @rhoorl that it feels surreal to be posting it! We hope you enjoy this as much as Jess and I enjoyed creating these characters! Thank you Jess for allowing me to come play in your sandbox and being such an amazing friend! 💕

x. master list | x. delta landscaping

There wasn’t a drawer in Katie's office that wasn’t open and rifled through. If anyone was to walk in at that moment, they’d think she’d been broken into. However, as she wiped her sweaty brow and tried to catch her breath, it was evident that it was Katie who was responsible.

She checked her watch on her wrist, “Fuck,” she muttered as she noticed the time, she had less than an hour to find the missing USB drive, get back to the office, give Miranda the rundown of the presentation and, oh, squeeze in a drive through visit for a very much needed obnoxious coffee to get through all of the above.

She shoved papers back into drawers, her eyes scanning over the desk one more time. Had she checked her car? Yes, it was the first place she’d looked after it was missing from her office desk. Did she check the kitchen, the place where everything usually ended up getting left to be sorted later? Yes, she’d broken a knob on one of the drawers she’d have to repair later. After the shake-down she’d given the usual spaces she dove back into the mess of her office, tossing aside pens, staplers, and old receipts, cursing herself for not being more organized.

Gritting her teeth, she moved onto the file cabinet that sat under her desk. Each and every drawer yielded nothing but old invoices, her passport which she’d actually been looking for the previous week, and the phone bill she still needed to pay. With a grunt, she sat back in her office chair, idly swinging side to side, trying to remember where she saw it last.

With a heavy sigh of frustration escaping, her eyes wandered towards the large window that framed the view of her front lawn; it had been the main reason for choosing that room as the location of her home office. It was where she mostly worked from, only dropping into the office on occasion. Today was a big presentation for her team, and she was the one leading it and had painstakingly created the deck. Foolishly though, she’d saved it to a USB drive rather than the cloud. Fooling herself into thinking she’d upload it when she was done, which wasn’t the case.

Chewing her lip absentmindedly, she caught sight of Will’s iconic red Jeep pulling up across the street. Despite her current predicament, a small smile tugged at her lips. Will and Benny Miller’s arrival on Mulefall Court all those months back had been a welcome one. If anything, the two brothers and their friends often provided a welcome distraction from the routine of work-from-home life.

Usually, it was Benny with Will, but today it was someone else. Climbing out of the passenger seat was the elusive ‘Cousin Joel’, a character of great interest in the neighbourhood group chat as of late, especially when news of his impending arrival for Benny’s fight later that week was announced.

Curiosity piqued, she leaned forward in her chair, angling to get a better look over her monitor setup at Joel. With his broad shoulders on display, swathed in green plaid unbuttoned to reveal a white t-shirt, he had a rugged charm about him. Sunglasses perched on his nose, he closed the Jeep’s door as he took in the neighbourhood.

However, as if sensing her gaze, Joel suddenly turned, his eyes, though hidden behind his sunglasses, seemed to look directly at her. Despite logic telling her there was no way he could likely see her, panic set in. She dropped to the floor in a frantic attempt to hide, her heartbeat furiously in her chest, and only part of that was due to the idea of being caught. The absurdity of the situation was not lost on her, a grown woman ducking from view over harmless curiosity.

Trying to get her bearings, her attention was taken by the buildup of dust under the desk, cursing the RoboVac for not reaching the far corners. Just as she was backing up to climb up from under her desk, her fingers brushed against something familiar. The USB drive! There, hiding in plain sight, she let out a laugh at the silver lining of her comical dive under the desk bringing her to the reason for running out of the office half an hour ago.

Relief washed over her but was quickly replaced by a sharp pang of pain as she bumped her head on the underside of the desk in her haste to stand up. Rubbing at her head, she made sure she was clear of the desk before she stood to avoid hitting her head again. Standing, she brushed down the front of her pencil skirt from the dust from under her desk. The last thing she needed was to turn up back at the office in a state before the departments' directors.

Running to the kitchen, she grabbed her phone, then made a path back to the front door, picking up the various items she’d strewn upon arriving home. Knitted duster, check, purse, check, car keys, check, and then finally, her heels she’d kicked off as soon as she was over the threshold. Trying to hold her balance, she slipped on the pumps and cursed her panic in leaving the office and forgoing the flats she usually wore for driving.

The mid-day sun was high, casting long shadows over her driveway as she navigated what was becoming the too-familiar obstacle course of loose and warped planks of her porch. Each step was a calculated risk, the heels of her shoes threatening to catch in the gaps. She reminded herself to finally arrange to get it fixed, a mental note she’d made countless times before after Will’s discovery that the whole thing was barely holding on and was likely on the cusp of collapse. A problem for future Katie, right now she needed to get back to the office with the USB.

Checking her tote’s contents, ensuring the USB drive had not moved since she last checked on it only five seconds previously, her focus was interrupted by a voice from across the way, “Hey, Katie!”

It was Will.

He was jogging across the street, a figure trailing behind him looking both ways across the street as they followed. As they approached and as she caught up with what was happening, her heart skipped a beat or two. ‘Cousin Joel’, the man whose all but brief mentions in the neighbourhood had launched a thousand theories and gossip threads in the group chat. He was even more ruggedly handsome up close than the view out of her window and through any of the photos she’d caught sight of at Will’s and the one FaceTime chat she’d briefly been a part of.

He had a casual confidence that was magnetic, and as she tore her attention back to Will, missing the appreciative once-over Joel gave her legs as she was too busy trying to find her voice, suddenly at a loss for words.

“Hey, Will,” she responded, trying to sound composed.

Will, oblivious to her internal struggle over Joel’s presence, gave her a wide smile, “Katie, I wanted you to meet Joel. He’s in town for an overdue vacation and just in time for our Benny’s fight this weekend!” He patted his cousin on the back, and it was evident without knowing, in just how he spoke about his cousin, that Will held him in great regard.

Joel extended his hand, his sunglasses now pushed to the top of his head, his deep brown eyes alight as his smile turned into a friendly smirk as if he was fully aware of the thoughts in her head, “It’s great to finally meet you, Katie,” he shot a look at his cousin, “I’ve heard a lot about you from Will.”

She took his hand, the warmth and firmness of his grip almost made her knees buckle. “So you’re the infamous Cousin Joel we’ve been hearing so much about?” she replied, hoping her voice sounded steadier than she felt.

Joel's smile widened at Katie's question, a spark of amusement flickering in his eyes. “Infamous, huh? I hope Will's been keeping it positive,” he joked, his voice deep and slightly tinged with a flirtatious undertone that wasn’t missed by Will as he raised a humoured eyebrow at Joel’s antics.

Before Katie could open her mouth to try and muster something that might have resembled a coherent sentence the boisterous voice of Benny Miller rang out through the street, “J MONEEEEYYY!! You made it!”

Benny charged across the road and with a running start leapt at Joel, who managed to catch him mid-air without so much as a stumble. Benny’s infectious energy was palpable, even without the wide grin spread across his face.

Suddenly, the air was filled with booming laughter

“Bean,” Joel rumbled, his eyes crinkling at the corners as he returned the hug with equal enthusiasm. “It's good to see you.”

Benny pulled back after a moment and grinned at Katie, “So you got to meet the man, the myth, the legend himself!” he said as he patted Joel’s shoulders, showing him off as if he were

a grand prize. Joel rolled his eyes but the smile never left his face.

“Indeed,” Katie responded, somewhat overwhelmed by the hive of activity that had descended upon her driveway, she was pretty sure several members of the group chat were twitching their blinds at Benny’s rowdy entrance, “but, J Money? Did I hear that right?”

Joel laughed as he shook his head, “It’s a nickname,” Benny swung his arm around Joel’s shoulder in pride, “It’s a long story,” Joel continued flashing Katie another smile that instantly made her stomach flip-flop once more.

Before the conversation could continue, Katie’s phone buzzed in her hands, bringing her back to reality, a reality where she needed to be back in the office doing a presentation in less than forty-five minutes.

“Sorry,” she held up her phone in a way of an apology.

She thought she caught a glint of disappointment across Joel’s face, but she quickly shook it off as just her imagination in the chaos of Benny’s arrival.

“Work?” Will asked, giving her a sympathetic look.

“Yeah,” she mumbled as her eyes skimmed over the message on the screen of her phone before she looked back at Will and Joel. “Unfortunately,” she said, forcing a smile onto her face despite the sinking feeling in her stomach at the weight of its importance rearing its head again. “Big presentation.”

Will nodded sympathetically, but still had a wide smile on his face conveying that he had the utmost confidence she was going to ace it. He had heard her talk about it for weeks, been an ear as she vented, and he knew she was well-prepared despite her fears, “No rest for the wicked.” he quipped with a wink.

“Yeah,” Katie murmured distractedly as she began to dig in her tote for her car keys, cursing how she could misplace them just steps from her front door. One last deep dive of her tote she finally fished them out from the bottom of the bag.

Before she could say anything, Will placed a reassuring hand on Katie’s arm as Benny regaled Joel about his training regime, “You got this Kat.”

She gave him a forced smile, “Thank you,” her phone buzzed again and she sighed, “Okay, I really have to go now.”

It was a quick round of goodbyes, but Katie couldn’t help but feel like she’d gotten lost in Joel’s gaze as he gave her a wide smile telling her it was nice meeting her. But before he could say any more, Benny was dragging him away talking loudly about the preparations for his fight Friday night and asking if Joel would come by the gym for his training session with Frankie. It was impossible not to notice the admiration Benny had for his older cousin from the pep in his step combined with his excitement and infectious enthusiasm that Joel seemed to share.

Reaching her car, Katie allowed herself one last glance back, catching the boys walking up the driveway of Will and Benny’s place. Benny animatedly talking with his hands flying in sparring moves, Will laughing with his head thrown back at something Benny had just said but what caught her breath was Joel watching her with a small smile on his face as he nodded his chin at her in a means of goodbye and a look in his eyes she just couldn’t quite figure out.

“Oh lord,” she muttered to herself feeling her cheeks flush with heat, “you’re a grown woman Katie.” With a deep breath, she opened the car door and took a deep breath as she got herself situated and dialled Miranda as she checked her mirrors and reversed down the driveway.

“Hey, Miranda, I’m on my way back to the office… yeah I’ve got it. We need coffee, what can I get you?”

Katie stretched out her legs across her sectional sofa, sinking into the corner and enjoying the plush cushions nesting her in. Despite the day’s presentation going off without a hitch, the day had been a long one. With a glass of white wine in one hand and a bag of chips in her lap, she settled in hoping to switch her mind off with some trashy TV.

She wasn’t far in on some reality home design show when her phone started to ping persistently. Dropping the bag of chips she picked up her phone from beside her and saw that the group chat was flying back and forth, the notifications already in the double digits.

She squinted at the screen, annoyed she’d left her glasses in the kitchen, as she scrolled through the chat. It mostly consisted of David asking about any and all sightings of ‘Cousin Joel’ and a picture of Joel. One that Katie zoomed in on with a pinch of her fingertips, squinting even further to make sense of the already blurry picture, that looked like it was taken from David and Ty’s house.

Katie: David, did you take this from your bathroom window?! David: 👀 no comment Ty: I stopped him before he got the binoculars out Melissa: has anyone actually seen ‘Cousin Joel’ in the flesh?! Olivia: I saw Ms. Katie with the boys and Joel this morning 😏 David: Katie baby, I need ALL the details!!!

Katie laughed at the enthusiasm of the chat, which turned into a giggle when she saw David’s last message.

Katie: Sorry to disappoint but I’ve got nothing juicy for you. Ran into the boys this morning, that’s all. David: so you’re telling me that sexy man was there and nothing came out of it?! David: Have I not taught you anything?! Olivia: give her a break Dave 😂 Ty: Olivia’s right. Let Katie live! David: give a man something Katie! Ty: Please Katie, he’ll be clawing at the walls for the rest of the night 🤦🏻‍♂️ Olivia: and maybe for the rest of us too… just saying 👀

Katie laughed again as she took a sip of her wine finishing the glass.

Katie: Okay, okay… He was hot, his pictures Melissa dug up do not do him justice David: 💀💀💀🪦 Melissa: Is David okay @Ty? Ty: I think he might be talking in tongues, I’m about to put a Stanley straw under his tongue so he doesn’t choke on it Olivia: This might be first time David has been rendered speechless

The group chat slowing down and some throwing out good night wishes, swiping out of the app and with a loss of interest in the HGTV show of the moment against her better judgement Katie opened Instagram and began to mindlessly scroll through her feed. It was a mix of family and friends’ updates, a few work colleagues and the occasional celebrity. She double-tapped a picture of one of her brothers posing with his dog and was about to swipe away from the app when a picture caught her eye, freezing her mid-motion.

It was Seb. Seb with his arm wrapped around her, Petra. His ex… No, not his ex anymore. The caption underneath read “She said YES! 💍”. There was a flood of congratulations and heart emojis in the comments section which Katie had expanded against her better judgement. She hadn’t realized she still following him since he rarely used social media.

A flood of emotions washed over her—surprise, a twinge of pain, and an odd sense of finality even if their divorce was almost a year out. She remembered their conversations at the start of their relationship, the way he’d always had that far-off look when he ‘joked’ about “the one that got away.” — then as their relationship progressed and things started to plateau and go south Katie tried to convince herself that she could be enough, that their love could be stronger than his past. But in the end, despite three years of marriage, she was just a placeholder until he found his way back to Petra.

Letting out the breath she didn’t know she was holding, she tried to shake off the feelings of inadequacy that threatened to resurface. The engagement announcement was a stark reminder of why she’d packed up her life in Chicago to move to Florida, to a house she bought sight unseen for a fresh start.

Before she could be tempted to go back through his profile page Katie quickly hit the unfollow button, a final act in moving forward.

Switching back to the group chat, she skimmed through the talk of Benny’s fight coming up that Friday. David asking if cigarette pants were appropriate attire and Olivia asking how late these things ran so she could arrange a babysitter.

Throwing her phone back onto the sofa Katie took a deep breath in a moment of reflection. The day had been a long one and filled with the ups and downs of the morning's events without news on Seb. Standing up she turned off the TV and walked back to the kitchen to refill her wine and on the way back she grabbed her glasses and her book she’d started over the weekend, hoping she’d find some distraction in its pages.

[trulybetty]

arriving at '323 Mulefall Crt.' very soon

a special wip wednesday teaser...

So excited to share a little of something that has been in the works for some time now, since around September of last year! The lovely @rhoorl graciously invited me to jump in her sandbox and play with her characters from her amazing series Delta Landscaping.

You don't have to read Delta Landscaping to follow along with this series, but I highly recommend it as Jess is the Queen of the Pedro Pascal Character Universe™️ and has crafted such a great story with amazing characters that you can't help but fall in love with and plots to keep you hooked!

So without further ado a little snippet...

Will, oblivious to her internal struggle over Joel’s presence, gave her a wide smile, “Katie, I wanted you to meet Joel. He’s in town for an overdue vacation and just in time for our Benny’s fight this weekend!” He patted his cousin on the back, and it was evident without knowing, in just how he spoke about his cousin, that Will held him in great regards. Joel extended his hand, his sunglasses now pushed to the top of his head, his deep brown eyes alight as his smile turned into a friendly smirk, as if he was fully aware of the thoughts in her head, “It’s great to finally meet you, Katie,” he shot a look at his cousin, “I’ve heard a lot about you from Will.”

Looking forward to sharing the first chapter of '323 Mulefall Crt.' very soon! 💕

[trulybetty]

323 Mulefall Crt. | Masterlist

In the sunny, eclectic neighbourhood of Mulefall Crt., Katie has been navigating her fresh start away from her past life in Chicago, finding unexpected friendships and found family with the street's residents. As she rebuilds her life, and the fixer-upper she purchased sight unseen, love is the last thing on her mind after being burned. However, Joel Miller's arrival has sparks flying and has her wondering if having fun might not be such a bad idea in helping her move on from her past.

x. moodboards | x. vibes | x. spotify | x. delta landscaping

Chapters

1. Chapter One | Monday 2. Chapter Two | Tuesday (coming soon)

[trulybetty]

(via Pin page)

[trulybetty]

joel miller x masterlist

x. main masterlist

series.

Gold Rush Old lovers Joel and Charlotte find themselves unexpectedly reunited in the community of Jackson. Struggling to navigate the complexities of their shared history and the harsh realities of their new lives, the pair find themselves again drawn to one another. Strings (Complete) Your arrangement with Joel Miller is supposed to be uncomplicated. No attachments. However, you're not sure how long this is going to last. 323 Mulefall Crt. (no outbreak!Joel x OFC) | Delta Landscaping Crossover In the sunny, eclectic neighbourhood of Mulefall Crt., Katie has been navigating her fresh start away from her past life in Chicago, finding unexpected friendships and found family with the street's residents. As she rebuilds her life, and the fixer-upper she purchased sight unseen, love is the last thing on her mind after being burned. However, Joel Miller's arrival has sparks flying and has her wondering if having fun might not be such a bad idea in helping her move on from her past. Honey (Jackson!Joel x f!reader) A series of oneshots, which can be read as a collective or on their own, depicting life for Joel in Jackson after the events of TLOU. The Little Coffee Shop Around the Corner Maplewood, a small town nestled in northern BC where people flock to see the festive decorations of the main street and enjoy the festive traditions. finding yourself back home and working for the family business, you strike up a friendship with the town's local contractor.

one shots.

Drip (warning potential TLOU2 spoilers) In the quiet of the house, you can hear voices arguing, but all you can focus on is the drip, drip, drip of the tap. Sequins (no outbreak!joel) On a night out with friends, you run into a broad-shouldered stranger and there's no denying that there's an immediate attraction between the two of you. happy birthday (no outbreak!joel) happy birthday Joel Miller. Tess (Gold Rush) (Joel x Tess & Joel x OFC) Tess doesn't hold any delusions from her complex, and often one-sided, relationship with Joel. Long Time (Gold Rush) (Joel x OFC) Inspired by The Last of Us Episode S1x03 - leaving Bill and Frank's home and Joel reminisces after Ellie finds a mix tape that unlocks some old buried memories.

prompts & drabbles.

oct' x 01 - ruffled hair (joel x gn!reader) oct' x 04 - walks in the forest (strings!joel x reader) oct' x 06 - falling leaves (gold rush!joel x charlotte) oct' x 10 - oktoberfest (sequins!joel x reader) oct' x 12 - cornfields (sequins!joel x f!reader) oct' x 15 - first wine (sequins!joel x reader) oct' x 18 - picking apples (sequins!joel x reader) oct' x 23 - harvest (gold rush!joel x charlotte) oct' x 27 - witches (sequins!joel x f!reader) oct' x 29 - stormy days (sequins!joel x f!reader)